FEATURES AND WATER RIGHTS OF YUBA RIVER. 121 



particular case." It may be possible by legislative action or legal interpretation of 

 the existing laws to restrict the riparian right to low-water discharge, leaving flood 

 waters for appropriation and storage. But the riparian right can not be set aside by 

 law, as it is " inseparabljr annexed to the soil, not as an easement or appurtenance, 

 but as part and parcel of it. Use does not create the right and disuse can not destroy 

 or suspend it."' 



CLAIMS FIIiED ON YTJBA RIVEB AND ITS TBIBUTABIES. 



Claims to the waters of Yuba River and its tributaries are recorded in the three 

 counties drained b}" that river — Nevada County, at Nevada Cit}-; Sierra County, at 

 Downieville; Yuba County, at Marysville. 



Nevada County claims are recorded in three volumes of Mining and Water 

 Claims. Subsequent to 1872 there is a separate volume of Water Claims. County 

 records prior to 1856 were destroyed bj' fire, and the right to some of the oldest and 

 most valuable properties rests upon prescription and evidence. The total number of 

 recorded claims is 358. 



Water rights in Sieri-a County are kept in six volumes known as Volumes A, B, 

 C, D, E, and F of Bank and Water Claims, and subsequent to 1895 a seventh volume, 

 Book G, Water Claims. 



The claims recorded aggregate about 3,000. The attorney who examined this 

 matter reported that it would take about fortj* days' work to transcribe them, and 

 the transcript wpuld be of little value for the following reasons: 



First. Since most of the earlj' claims were taken up for mining purposes onh', 

 and as this water was returned to the stream, it did not reallj' impair the volume of 

 water. 



Second. The very great majority of these claims have long since been abandoned 

 and are dead. 



Third. Many of these claims were notices of intention only, and nothing was 

 done to carry out the intention. 



Fourth. Many perfectly valid water rights exist which have not been recorded, 

 the rights having been acquired by prescription. 



These claims were, therefore, not copied. Those upon the assessor's list num- 

 ber 90. 



Yuba County water records are kept in Volumes I and II, Miscellaneous Records; 

 Volumes I and II, Prescriptions, and Volume I, Water Rights (since 1872). 



In these volumes are recorded 329 claims, many of which are abandoned." 



STORAGE OF WATER IN THE BASIN OF YUBA RIVER. 



The precipitation upon the drainage basin of the Yuba. River is dependent upon 

 the southerly or winter extension of the north temperate rain belt. During the 

 summer months the more northerlj' position of this belt leaves California in the 

 comparatively rainless region between the north temperate and arid equatorial rain 

 belts. The rains and snows, therefore, fall from October to April, with little or no 



'69 Cal., 255, previously quoted. 



'An abstract of these claims was furnished with this report. It is too long to be inserted. 



